What Is Your HR Data Telling You About Your Business?

Data. Many people think of it as numbers that someone rapidly types into a spreadsheet and then uses a complicated formula to calculate something.

But data comes in many forms. Including HR data. That is data that you can use practically in your business to tweak processes, increase staff morale and look after your people better.

We tend to think that if the Spice Girl’s management team had spent more time analysing their HR data, the band would not only still be together today, they would have a level of success to rival the Beatles…

Okay, maybe not. BUT they may have been able to stretch the gig out a little longer, keep their most talented members – ahem, yes, there were a couple! – from jumping ship early and had a much more positive team culture.

How are the Spice Girls relevant to your business? Well, HR is so much more than just crunching numbers, dealing with disputes and endless piles of paperwork. In fact, HR analysis is a rapidly growing field of expertise that modern, successful businesses are using to their advantage.

Let’s look into how you can use this data in your business.

What Is HR Data And How Can You Use It?

There is plenty of useful information in your HR functions if you know where to look for it. Using the data you collect from performance reviews, exit interviews, training information, staff satisfaction surveys, staff retention and even sick days, you can make smart decisions that add immense value to your business.

HR data collection is not a new thing, but utilising it effectively – if at all – is a relatively recent advancement. It is all well and good conducting exit interviews and monitoring sick days, but what is the point if you don’t use that information? It’s like buying a rack full of spices to improve your cooking and leaving them sitting in the back of the cupboard.

The key to using this information to drive success is knowing what to look for. Is there a specific issue or question you want an answer to? Do you want to know how to reduce absenteeism, evaluate staff training, or predict which new hires are going to stay the distance? HR professionals can nail down the questions, use the freshly gained or existing data to do all of these things and more.

Here are just three things your HR data will tell you if you know how to ask:

How To Retain Your Top Talent

Does your data suggest that once your employees become proficient at their jobs and reach a certain level, they will leave? Then it is time to dig a little deeper to find out WHY this happens. Then you come up with solutions to keep your top achievers on board, such as more opportunities and training, or a better work environment.

You will only find out the reason for their departure by asking them. We suggest conducting an exit interview with each team member that leaves the company. Not all will be leaving because of the happenings at your business, some will leave for personal reasons. But, you can find out a lot about the culture, processes, work environment and available resources by asking people their opinions.

 

How To Keep Your Employees Happy

Everyone knows that a happy employee is a productive, loyal employee. Do you really know if your top performers are satisfied with their work?

If not, find out. You can look at absentee rates between departments or individuals, assess who your most efficient team members are, then use those insights to make improvements. The bonus of a happy workforce is staff retention, which saves big money on recruitment and increases efficiency.

You can also ask your team to answer some survey questions. To find their true feelings, you can make it anonymous. You just need to ensure that you are asking the right questions to get the targeted data that you need.

 

Assess Performance

Did Posh Spice work harder than Baby Spice? Did Sporty bring in more money than Ginger?

They are important questions to ponder within your own team. If you know which employees work faster and produce a higher quality of work, you can aim to replicate that productivity across the board. A key thing to understand is, what is making them so much more efficient than the rest of the team?

Once you understand that, you can act accordingly. It might mean offering further training for underperformers, boosting staff morale, offering flexible working conditions, team building, or any number of other things.

 

If you would love to access the hidden gems in your HR data but you aren’t sure where to start, then give us a call here at Spice HR. We can help you sift through the information and boost business at your place. Get in touch today.

The Importance of Training and Development for Your Team

Do you groan at the thought of training and development for your staff? So much time, so much money, so much energy, so much effort has to go into training right?

But have you thought about what you can get out of it?

Training and development does not only offer benefits to your team members, but it can do wonders for your business as a whole. Let’s have a look at why training and development should be a vital part of your plan for each year.

 

Why Training and Development?

The initial training of a new team member is a given. After all it is vital that they know how to perform their role safely and effectively to begin with. But is there a need for training after that, surely they already know how to do the job?

We find the need for ongoing training is a constant debate in businesses. Is it worth the investment? We say wholeheartedly yes! And here is why…

Standing Still

You would not dream of letting your business stand still. To let it go about its daily functions without some forward planning. You strive for growth and improvement so that it continues to be successful. So why would it be any different with your team members? Regular staff training is essential for the skill development that will help your business to grow.

Industry Changes

Industries are constantly evolving and changing. If you don’t keep up with their changes then you will get left behind. Legally you need to make sure you are on top of regulations and you won’t be able to do that without updating the knowledge of your team. Technologies change on a daily basis, so a one-off training session is not sufficient. All of your team members should be comfortable with the available technology and know how to use it to its fullest capabilities.

Stay Ahead

If your business is not progressing forward, then it is highly possible you will be passed by your competitors. By constantly advancing your team, you can ensure you remain competitive in the marketplace.

Highlight Skill Gaps

If you are on top of your training it will be easy to identify any gaps in the market, or gaps within your existing team. Identifying these gaps early means that you can train someone to fill them and your business will not have to suffer for it.

Advance Team Skills

Once an employee has learned the basic skills required for their job, you can easily build on their knowledge with ongoing training. This allows them to cement the knowledge they already have and build upon it. Team members that know more and have more skills, have more to offer your business.

Increased Job Satisfaction

Staff morale is an extremely important component of your business. If it is low then you will have unmotivated and unproductive staff who try to get by with minimum effort. However, if your staff morale is high, your team will enjoy coming to work and will put in their best effort every day. Ongoing training shows that you value your staff. Allowing them to advance their skills will give them greater job satisfaction and keep the morale high at your workplace. Everybody wins!

Staff Retention

It is human nature to want change and progression. If you can offer your team opportunities to progress within your business, then they will want to stay with you. That means you minimise the need for recruitment – a costly and time-consuming process. By internally promoting existing staff you can ensure they have a comprehensive knowledge of your business. You also know their work ethic and that their skills are suited for the role.

Attract New Talent

Your team members are the backbone of your business, they are your most important asset. By having a reputation as a business that provides ongoing training, you will be able to attract the best staff from the beginning and retain them.

 

As you can see, ongoing Training and Development of your team has many benefits to your business. But sometimes it can be difficult to know how to implement such a programme at your workplace. If you need some guidance on how best to establish an ongoing training programme, then get in touch with us here at Spice HR.

Training and Development is something that we are truly passionate about and would love to help you implement the right kind of programme for your business. Get in touch today for a no-obligation chat!

Stop. Collaborate and Listen …

 

Stop.  Collaborate and Listen … Spice is back with a brand new invention.

Got an HR problem yo, we’ll solve it. Check out our skills while the Spice Gals resolve it!

Spice, Spice baby!

Listening is Everything

Listening in Orange

 

The art of listening is a learned skillset that can have a tremendous impact on your work environment.  It will ensure you actually hear when your staff tell you what they want, what they really, really want!

Call the Spice Gals today to spice up your listening life – if you really, really, really wanna zig-a-zig-ah!

Time to listen up folks!

We could all do with this reminder from time to time.  Listening to understand is a learned skill.  Spice HR specialises in creating and delivering targeted onsite training, to help your staff with their communication.

Get your staff listening in the right way, contact the Spice Gals today!

THE biggest communication problem is we don't listen to understand.

Integrity is everything

The Spice Gals … rocking 3 out of the 4 with the utmost integrity!

Integrity

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Call us for all your HR staffing needs.